Amy from Middletown, NJ has been a Green Sun Energy Services client since October of 2022. The generator was installed by another company and commissioned in January of 2012, and the servicing came to us ten years later. The ten-year service has been carried out four times since – in 2022, 2024, 2025 and again this year. A machine in its fourteenth year is past the age at which most standby generators have been quietly written off, and the only thing separating one that still starts from one that does not is whether somebody has kept opening the enclosure. An annual maintenance plan now covers the yearly visit.
Project Facts
- Location
- Middletown, NJ
- Service
- Standby Generator Service
- Client since
- October 2022
- Manufacturer
- Generac Model # 5884
- Rated output
- 14 kW LP / 13 kW NG
- Fuel
- Natural Gas
- Transfer switch
- 60 amp
Standby generator questions from Middletown homeowners
Does the transfer switch need flood protection as well as the generator?
Yes. A flood review should cover much more than the generator enclosure. FEMA recommends that a residential standby system consider elevation or protection of the generator, the transfer switch, the normal and emergency panels, the feeders and the control wiring together.
Will a larger gas meter be needed?
Possibly. A generator can significantly increase a home's maximum gas demand. If the existing meter or service cannot hold the required pressure while supplying the generator and the other appliances together, the gas utility may require an upgrade.
Does a generator produce less on natural gas than on propane?
Some models do have a lower rated maximum output on natural gas than on propane -- a current 22 kW machine is rated 22 kW on LP and 21 kW on natural gas. Other models carry their own ratings, so the model-specific specification sheet is what settles it rather than a general rule.